For instance, did you know that Wal-Mart is now selling generic prescription drugs for $4 per prescription in all 50 states? For a short time, this new drug plan was only being tried out in a few states, but public demand and competition have caused them to accelerate their roll-out plan for all their stores in the US. The $4 price is for everyone, not just those who have insurance. You can go to their website to learn which prescriptions are covered.
Target Stores around the country are also offering the same kind of plan for their stores that have pharmacies. For folks in Eastern Washington, it would be only their stores in Spokane and Kennewick. Wenatchee does not have a pharmacy, according to the Target website.
Because of this new prescription plan, I was able to change my own medical insurance to a prices point that is less than half of what I was paying. OK, Wal-Mart, I will give you this one.
Switching subjects, if you would like to save huge dollars on your food bill, you might consider shopping at Winco Stores. These giant stores are like Costco, at least as far as their size and prices go...except you don't have to buy huge quantities of an item. Most everything they carry is in standard grocery store sizes. And their prices are so much less than Safeway or most other grocery stores.
For instance, a can of chili that I get on sale at Safeway for $1, was 68 cents everyday at Winco. A bag of raviolis at Safeway is almost $4 while at Winco, the same bag was $2.54. Fresh bagels were 33 cents at Winco compared to 55 cents at Safeway. This list is nearly endless. Sadly, in Eastern Washington, there are only two Winco Stores, one in Kennewick and one in Richland. They have many more in California, Oregon and Idaho. Susan and I go to Tri Cities once a month to do our shopping as the prices are so much less and we can hit Costco also while we are there
Now, let's take a look at some interesting web shopping sites:
This site, which is sponsored by retail trade association Shop.org, is a central repository for holiday deals and offers from nearly 400 retailers. If you are looking for a bargain, the "Special Offers" section should be your target, as it lists all the specials by retailer. As I write this, you could snag complimentary shipping from Ann Taylor, Ann Taylor LOFT, Adidas and dozens more websites, or save $25 on your Brookstone order, or save 20% on your holiday lights and ornaments at Smith & Hawken, and on and on and on. Featured retailers include Nordstrom, Barnes & Noble, Best Buy, Bloomingdale's, Amazon.com, Lands' End and hundreds more.
As the name implies, ShopLocal is a search engine for all the shopping opportunities in your neighborhood. First enter your zip code, and indicate how many miles away from your zip code you're willing to shop. Then you can search the site in one of several ways. You can find out which stores near you have specific items and compare prices. You can check out the deals at a specific local store via its weekly circulars. You can print coupons for local sales and bargains. Or you can check out what's being advertised in your local newspaper. Armed with all of this information, you then head out into the world and go shopping. ShopLocal is owned by the nation's three leading newspaper and media companies: Tribune, McClatchy and Gannett.
DealCatcher could be considered the "granddaddy" of deal-spotting websites...they have been listing them as spotted by family and friends since 1999. Today the site receives over 6 million page views per month and promotes over 500 merchant's specials. You will find coupons, products, sales, reviews and rebates, which are updated 24 hours a day by staff and forum members. You can also set up email or RSS alerts by keyword so you can be alerted instantly whenever there's a new deal posted for something you're looking for or a place where you like to shop. At the site you will also find a comprehensive list of rebates as well as the best deals from all of the Sunday circulars across the US.
eBay is a great place to shop for unique gifts while scoring a deal in the process. But if your beloved has her heart set on a 19th century ceramic urn, it might end up costing you more to have the thing shipped than you paid for it in the first place - and it might end up damaged or broken in the process. That's why you'll start your next eBay product search at this site. Enter your zip code, how far you're willing to travel for the item and what you're searching for, and it will show you a Google map of your area with little map pins indicating where the sellers of eBay items up for auction are located. On the right side of the screen are photos of the products for auction, so you can move around the map and see if anything nearby peaks your interest. You can then bid on the item, win and go pick it up, instead of incurring outrageous shipping costs for sending something across the country. The technology "mashes" current eBay auction information over a Google map.
Happy shopping, everyone!!
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